


Cacti and Peace Lilies

by betsib



Category: The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Flower Shop, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-01
Updated: 2014-06-01
Packaged: 2018-02-03 00:22:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,903
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1724297
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/betsib/pseuds/betsib
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jason goes to buy flowers, and the boy working in the flower shop is really cute.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Cacti and Peace Lilies

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by [this picture](http://fim-damaskino.tumblr.com/post/86706482255/he-knows-he-looks-really-out-of-place-among-the) by Fim-Damaskino.

Jason entered the flower shop, and was immediately hit by the fresh scent of flowers. His nose started tickling a bit, but unless he stayed long he would be fine. Looking around, he saw the shop was empty of people, except a thin boy wearing black clothes underneath a green apron. His dark, curly hair was just long enough to be up in a ponytail, which showed off his slender neck. He was standing with his back towards Jason, arranging flowers into a bouquet.

Jason cleared his throat, and the boy turned around. He was pale and looked vaguely like he hadn’t been sleeping well for a while, but his dark eyes were pretty intense. Jason stared into them for a moment before he remembered he was supposed to say something. “

"Hey, uh...do you work here?” he asked, which was a pretty stupid question, considering the boy was wearing an apron with the words _Persephone’s Garden_ printed on it in bold letters. Still, he seemed so out of place in the bright flower shop with his black clothes and dark rings under his eyes.

“...yeah,” the boy said, raising an eyebrow. “If you’re looking for red roses, they are in the chiller cabinet over there.”

“Um, no. Sorry,” Jason said, a little taken aback. “I’m looking for a Japanese Peace Lily, for a friend.”

The boy, Nico according to his nametag, looked a bit surprised. “We should have a couple of those left. The ‘Japanese’- part is misapplied, though. They’re just Peace Lilies,” he said, putting down the flower in his hand and starting to walk down the narrow aisle between the flower displays. Jason followed him.

“Sorry about that, by the way. Most guys coming in here are always looking for red roses, like no other flowers exist,” Nico said, before stopping in front of a strange white flowers looking vaguely like a straw of wheat wearing high white collar. “Take your pick.”

“I honestly have no idea,” Jason said. “All the pots look the same to me. Is there a difference?”

“Some have more flowers than others,” Nico said. “But it’s fairly evenly divided in this case.”

Jason pointed out a flower pot at random, and Nico carefully brought it back to the counter. It was a pretty high flower, making the boy look even shorter while he was carrying it. Jason thought it was kinda cute.

“Do you want me to package it for you?” Nico asked. “Or do you want it gift wrapped?”

“Just the usual packaging is fine,” Jason said, watching in fascination as the boy treated the flower with utmost care while still quickly wrapping it in old newspaper. He had pretty long, slender fingers.

“You said it was for a friend. Is she or he familiar with peace lilies from before?” Nico asked.

“I’m not sure,” Jason said. “Are they difficult to take care of?”

“Not particularly. Spray leaves every now and again and water when the soil feels dry, which should be approximately once a week,“ he said, vaguely sounding like he was repeating something of the hundredth time. “Also the plant is mildly toxic, so keep it out of reach from children and pets.”

“That shouldn’t be a problem,” Jason said. Nico finished wrapping up the flower.

“Will there be anything else?” he asked, and Jason hesitated. If he had been just a little bit braver he would have asked for the boy's number, but instead he just shook his head, payed for the flower and thanked Nico before walking out of the store.

***

“You seem a bit distracted,” Piper said later, when they were having a coffee at her apartment. The peace lily stood on her windowsill, and Jason’s eyes kept moving back to it. “If you like that flower so much, take it. I can buy myself another one.”

“Sorry,” Jason said, turning back towards her. “It’s not the flower.”

Piper frowned for a moment, before smirking widely. “Okay, tell me. How hot was she?”

“Who?” Jason asked in confusion.

“The flower shop lady,” Piper clarified. “You got the hots for the girl selling you that flower, don’t you?”

Jason groaned. Piper could be annoyingly perceptive sometimes, though even she couldn’t see everything. “It wasn’t like that. It wasn’t even a girl,” he said, and her smile got bigger.

“Now I’m genuinely interested in this. Who was he? What did he look like?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Jason said. “I’m probably not going to see him again, anyway.”

“Oh, yes, you are,” Piper laughed. “I know you. You’re going to start buying houseplants tomorrow, aren’t you? Now, tell me about this guy.”

***

As annoying as it was, Piper _was_ right. Jason went back to the store the following day, but _not_ because of Nico. He had realized his apartment was completely void of plants, and figured he could use some.

Nico was standing behind the counter when Jason entered. He seemed to be in the middle of making funeral wreaths, and for some reason Jason thought it fit him. The boy looked a little surprised to see him.

“Welcome back,” he said with a guarded smile, like he expected Jason to start complaining about something. “How can I help you?”

“I’m looking for some sort of houseplants that are easy to take care of,” Jason said uncertainly.

“How big are we talking?” Nico asked, putting the wreath away. “And do you want something that blooms or not?”

“I’m not sure,” Jason said, feeling a bit stupid. “Nothing too big. I guess something that can stand on the floor, but isn’t a tree? It doesn’t have to bloom.”

“Follow me, then,” Nico said, taking him a bit deeper into the store. There didn’t seem to be anyone else around.

“Do you work here alone?” Jason asked, looking around.

“At the moment,” Nico answered. “My stepmother owns this shop and I usually only work here part-time, but she’s on vacation for a few weeks.”

“You seem to know a lot for a part-timer,” Jason said honestly. “I barely know anything about plants.”

“Hence the need for something that’s easy to care for, I assume,” Nico said dryly. “How about a snake plant? They are pretty popular, and hard to kill unless you’re actively trying to.”

The plant he suggested was pretty funny looking, just sharp long leaves growing straight up, but the leaves had some pretty interesting color variations.

“How would you take care of one?” Jason asked.

“Just put it somewhere bright and water it when the soil is dry,” Nico said. “There’s not much else to it. If you’re prone to forget to water your plants this is a pretty safe bet.”

“Good,” Jason smiled. “Yeah, I’ll take it.”

***

Nico tried not to wait for the blond guy to come back.

He had already been there twice, and there was no reason for him to turn up a third time, but for some reason Nico kept hoping for the door to open to reveal that gorgeous smile again. Well, it was all innocent wishful thinking, anyway. Even if the guy came back all Nico could do about it was stare and store things away for his own private fantasies. For one thing, he was 90% sure the guy was straight, and even if he wasn’t he was way out of Nico’s league.

After three days, when he had pretty much given up on ever seeing the guy again, he walked through the door with a big grin on his face. 

“Welcome back,” Nico said, hoping he wasn’t blushing. “How did the Snake Plant work out for you?”

“It’s still alive, amazingly enough,” the guy grinned. “But it looks a bit lonely, so I figured I’d buy something smaller for the windowsill as well.”

Nico smiled as he showed the guy around, eventually leading him to the cactus table. After some consideration the guy bought three small cacti, because apparently they looked cute. Nico was beside himself, though he tried not to show it. A hot, muscular guy who was convinced plants could be lonely or look cute. That was just unreal.

He paid by card, and this time Nico took a moment to subtly read the name. _Jason Grace._ He was unable not to smile as he handed the plant over and thanked Jason for his purchase. A very fitting name, in that almost too good to be true-way. Like most things about him.

Too good for the likes of Nico, anyway.

***

“Whoa!” Leo exclaimed as he entered Jason’s apartment. “Where the hell did all these plants come from? Did you get a visit from the houseplant-fairy or something?”

“It’s not that many,” Jason said defensively. “Piper have far more plants than I do.”

“I thought you had pollen allergy,” Leo said.

“Yeah, but not that much,” Jason said, kneeling down by the television to put the movie on.”I think they cheer the place up.”

“Nice try,” Leo laughed. “But Piper told me about your flower boy. How’s that going?”

Jason blushed, but tried not to let it show. “He’s not my boy.”

“Please tell me you’ve asked him out at least,” Leo said, throwing himself down on the couch. “He’ll think you’re a creep if you just go there buying plants all the time just to see him.”

“I’m planning to ask him, it’s just...” Jason said, frustratedly running a hand through his hair,. 

“You chicken out?”

“It’s not that. I don’t even know if he likes guys,” Jason muttered. “And even if he does I might not be his type.”

Leo laughed. “Only one way to find out.”

Jason supposed he was right.

***

For once, Nico was talking to another person when Jason entered the shop, but it didn’t seem to be a customer.

“Come on, don’t leave me hanging,” the other guy said, holding on to Nico’s arm over the counter, despite the boy trying to shake him off. “Why are you playing hard to get?”

“I’m not playing,” Nico growled. “I told you I have no interest in seeing you again. If you’re not going to buy something, please leave.”

“Why are you being like this?” the guy said, clearly getting angry. “Or are you suggesting I buy _you?_ Is that how it works, you _whore?_ ”

Things seemed to be getting out of hand, so Jason took a step forward. “Is there a problem here?” he asked in his most professional tone. Both of them looked up like they hadn’t realized he was there.

“Who the fuck are you?” the guy snarled. “Mind your own business.”

“Harassment _is_ my business,” Jason said, showing his badge and watching the guy grow pale. “Now, what seems to be the problem?”

“Nothing,” the guy muttered, turning to walk out the door. “I’ll talk to you later, Nico!” Jason looked after him as he disappeared, then turned towards Nico again. 

“Do you want to file a report?” Jason asked him. Nico was watching him with wide eyes.

“No. No, that won’t be necessary,” he said. “I had no idea you were a cop.”

“Not surprising, considering I’m not in my uniform,” Jason shrugged.

“You’re not investigating me or something, are you?” Nico asked jokingly, and Jason laughed. 

“No, I’m off duty,” he said. “Why? Are you selling illegal plants here?”

“Not that I know of,” Nico smiled. “Thanks for the help, by the way.”

“You’re welcome,” Jason said, smiling back. “Was he your ex or something?”

“We went on one date, and it didn’t go well,” Nico said. “For some reason he still seems to think I should be with him, I don’t know why.”

“If it continues, you should file a report. Stalking can become dangerous,” Jason said. Nico nodded tiredly.

“I’ll think about it,” he said. “So how can I help you? More houseplants?”

They walked around for a while, and Jason eventually settled for a spider plant, since he thought it looked kinda funny. After paying, Jason hesitated. He had resolved to do something about this, but the timing was pretty bad, considering what had happened earlier. On the other hand, he should probably get it over with before he developed a stalking-habit himself. 

“Was there something else?” Nico asked hesitantly when Jason didn’t move. 

“Yeah, actually...” Jason begun, not really sure how to say it. ”Would you be interested in going for a coffee with me sometime?”

Nico’s eyes went wide. “Are...are you asking me out?” 

Jason nodded. “Yeah, I am,” he said. “No hard feelings if you don’t want to, though.”

“No, but...” the boy said, still looking surprised. “Are you just asking out of pity for what happened earlier? I thought you were straight for sure.”

“Bisexual, and no. I’ve been considering asking you out for a while now,” Jason said. “But like I said, no pressure.”

Nico was quiet for a while. “I, um, I close up shop at seven,” he said. “So if you want to go somewhere I’m free after that.”

Jason smiled happily. “Sounds great. I’ll drop by at seven then?”

“Okay,” Nico said, sounding a little out of breath. Jason gave him another smile before collecting the spider plant and walking out of the store, resisting the urge to do a triumphant fist-pump.

Still, that had gone so much better than he thought it would.

***

When Jason left, Nico had a mild panic attack.

There was no way that had just happened! These kinds of things just didn’t happen outside soap operas, and definitely not in Nico’s life. A hot, athletic guy asking him out? And not just any guy, a cop? No, something was definitely wrong with this picture.

To say he was nervous when the clock reached seven was an understatement. Nico was scared out of his wits. Part of him almost hoped Jason would stand him up so he wouldn’t have to deal with it.

However, when he exited the store Jason was already outside, waiting for him.

“Hey,” he smiled. “Ready to go?”

Nico could feel his cheeks grow hot, which was ridiculous. “Sure,” he murmured, following Jason to his car. Jason stopped right outside it, hesitating.

“I just realized something stupid,” he said, looking sheepish. “I haven’t actually introduced myself, have I?”

“Jason Grace, right? It’s on your credit card,” Nico said, trying to make it sound casual. “I’m Nico di Angelo.”

“Nice to meet you,” Jason laughed, looking a bit relieved as he shook Nico’s hand. He had a firm grip, but wasn’t one of those guys who tried to crush your hand. “So I know we just said coffee, but I was wondering if maybe we could do dinner instead?”

“Sounds good,” Nico said, hoping he wouldn’t be too nervous to eat. He had skipped lunch and was getting a bit hungry. “What do you have in mind?”

“I don’t know. Italian?”

Nico snorted. “Only if it’s an actual Italian restaurant and not some sort of rip off pizza place,” he said.

“Works for me,” Jason said with a smile. “You’ve got something against pizza places?”

“I'm Italian, so yes, I do,” Nico muttered.

“Really?” Jason asked, sounding surprised. “You barely have an accent at all. I wouldn’t even have realized.”

“I’ve lived here since I was ten,” Nico shrugged. “I’m still picky about the food, though.”

“Understandable. You know any good places then?”

Nico took them to a fairly good restaurant he used to work in before Persephone decided to put aside their differences and employ him in the flower shop. He would never tell her, but he actually preferred the flower shop to the restaurant. It was quieter, for one thing.

Jason suggested that Nico order for the both of them, so he did. He was vaguely tempted to show off by ordering the whole thing in Italian, but considering the waiter’s pronunciation of “benvenuti” she wouldn’t have understood him anyway.

“So Nico, tell me about yourself,” Jason smiled when they were waiting for the food. “What do you do when you’re not selling flowers?”

“I’m studying history,” Nico said. “I’m trying to come up with a good topic for my master’s thesis at the moment.”

“Any ideas so far?” Jason asked, sounding genuinely interested, which was pretty rare. Most of the people Nico had dated before didn't care at all.

“Not really,” Nico said, shaking his head. “Persephone suggested something about the use of decorative flowers in ancient Greece, but I don’t know. It’s not really my thing.”

“Wait, so your stepmother's name is actually Persephone?” Jason asked. “I thought that was just the name of the shop.”

“It gets better,” Nico smiled sardonically. “My father’s name is Hayden, and he owns a number of funeral homes.”

“You’re kidding.”

“I wish I was. They never get tired of joking about it,” Nico sighed. “So what about you? What made you want to become a cop?”

Jason shrugged. “My dad wanted me to become a businessman, and my mother was pushing me to become a senator, but I lack the ambition for both,” he said. “A friend told me he was planning on going to the police academy and I decided it was a good idea. We graduated about two years ago, and he’s my partner now.”

“What did your parents say about that?” Nico asked, curious.

“They were angry at first, but now they are planning on making me Chief of Police,” Jason laughed.

“But you’d rather sit in your car eating donuts all day?”

“Hey, I resent that,” Jason grinned. ”There’s also bagels and brownies.”

The whole dinner passed in a pretty light mood. When Jason eventually drove him home it had gotten pretty late already. Nico directed him to his apartment block, and Jason parked right outside the building.

“So, um, thanks. I had fun,” Nico said uncertainly, hesitating with his hand on the door handle. He kinda didn’t want this so end just yet. “Do you want to come up for a cup of coffee or something?” He blurted the words out way too fast, but Jason seemed to understand anyway.

“Sure,” he said, smiling widely as he turned the engine off. It wasn’t until they were standing in the elevator on the way up to Nico’s apartment that he realized something.

“Um, I wasn't expecting anyone, so my place is kinda messy,” he said, embarrassed. “I hope you don’t mind.”

“I used to share a room with a guy who cleaned maybe once a month if I threatened to throw his stuff away,” Jason smiled. “I doubt it’s that bad.”

At least the apartment was just messy, not filthy. Nico had a bad habit of not putting things back into their proper places, but he did clean pretty often.

“Make yourself at home, I’ll go but on some coffee,” Nico said, hurrying towards the kitchen counter.

“No way!” Jason exclaimed a few moments later. “Are these Mythomagic cards?”

Nico blushed violently as he turned around, seeing Jason inspect the pack of cards he had apparently left on the dinner table.

“Yeah,” Nico muttered. “I’m a nerd.”

“That’s awesome,” Jason said excitedly. “I used to play this all the time until I ran out of opponents. I probably still have my favorite deck somewhere.”

Nico blinked. “Really?” he asked, baffled. “I wouldn’t have thought it was your kind of thing.”

Jason laughed. “I get that a lot,” he said. “Is this a Styx deck? I’ve never played against anyone using that before. Isn’t it kinda weak?”

“Not if you value defense rather than offence. Many of the cards have retaliation bonuses,” Nico said, grinning. “I take it you’re all about the Heracles-type hero cards?”

“Actually no. I always used the Legion of Wolves Special Edition Expansion Pack, with the Roman cards. Nobody was ever prepared for that,“ Jason said. “We should totally play sometime.”

“Agreed, but don’t complain when I beat you,” Nico said. “My half-sister had that pack, and I know how it works.”

“We’ll see,” Jason said, grinning widely.

They kept chatting about Mythomagic and other fairly nerdy things over coffee, and Nico had far more fun than he would have expected. Hell, he had a vague feeling that the whole thing was a dream, because there was no way this good looking guy in front of him was interested in the same things he was, let alone interested in _him_. Still, the clock passed midnight and no spell was broken, so maybe it was actually happening.

“It’s getting late, I should probably get going,” Jason said a while later, sounding reluctant.

“Right,” Nico said, standing up to put their cups away. He didn’t really want the evening to end, to be honest. When he looked up Jason stood in front to him, looking a little nervous.

“So, um, I’d really want to see you again, if that’s okay?” he said. He was standing really close, and Nico’s heart started beating hard in his chest.

“Yeah,” Nico said, trying to keep his voice steady. “Yeah, I’d like that.”

Jason smiled, and it wasn’t really fair that he was smiling so happily while standing so close. Nico got a bit lost in those electric blue eyes for a moment, then suddenly they were coming closer, and Jason’s lips met his. Nico wasn’t sure which one of them had moved, but he didn’t care. Jason Grace was _kissing_ him, and that was all that mattered.

Jason started to pull back a little while later, but Nico quickly captured his lips again, not quite ready for this to end. Thankfully Jason didn’t seem to have any objections, quite the opposite. His hands started to wander over Nico’s body, and Nico wanted more of it. He dragged Jason backwards into his bedroom, and Jason followed willingly.

***

When Nico woke up the following morning the bed was empty and the apartment quiet. For a confusing moment he thought the whole date might have been a dream, but the dull ache between his legs said otherwise. The sun was shining into his windows, and he sat up in bed, looking to see what time it was. His alarm clock was yellow, for some reason. Blinking, he realized it wasn’t the clock itself, but that someone had put a post it-note over it. Nico reached out to pull it loose, blinking a couple more times to be able to read it.

_Nico,_  
 _I had to go to work, but you were sleeping so soundly I didn’t want to wake you. I wrote down my phone number below. Call me when you wake up, okay?_  
 _Jason_

Nico smiled slightly. He wasn’t one to sleep with people on the first date, not really, but Jason was apparently a decent guy on top of everything else. He started to get out of bed to get his phone, then happened to see the time on the alarm clock.

“Shit!” Nico exclaimed, jumping out of bed and rushing to get a quick shower. When he opened the flower shop half an hour later (and about forty minutes too late) he realized he had forgotten the note with Jason’s number at home.

***

“Dude, this is the third time in ten minutes you check your phone,” Percy said, exasperated. “If she calls, you’re going to hear it. Just how bad have you got it for this girl, anyway?”

“It’s not a girl,” Jason sighed, putting his phone away. “If you put a note on someone’s alarm clock they are bound to see it when they wake up, right?”

“Oh, _that’s_ what this is about?” Percy grinned. “Why don’t you just call him and check?”

“Because I don’t have his number,” Jason groaned. “I knew I should have woken him up.”

“Huh, I’m a bit surprised,” Percy said. “Well, a lot, since I didn’t even know you liked guys, but sleeping with someone whose phone number you don’t have doesn't seem like something you usually do.”

“It’s not,” Jason said. ”I wasn’t planning on taking it that far, but it just happened. I really like him.”

“Relax, he’s probably still asleep,” Percy said reassuringly. Jason wasn’t so sure.

When afternoon came and Nico still hadn’t called Jason was getting frantic. The worst part was that he didn’t know if Nico just hadn’t seen the note, or had seen it and was mad at him, or maybe deliberately didn’t call because he didn’t want to see Jason again. When Jason finally got off work, he drove back to the flower shop, not sure what to expect.

Nico was in the middle of helping two older women when he came into the shop, so Jason hung back to watch him. He seemed a little stressed, but was smiling towards the ladies anyway. When he noticed Jason, he blushed deeply and turned away from him, ignoring him until the ladies had left the store.

“Hey,” Nico said. He was still standing behind the counter, and Jason hoped he didn’t feel like he needed the safety zone. 

“Hey,” Jason said uncertainly. “I was hoping you would call, but...”

“I’m sorry,” Nico interrupted him. “I overslept and had to rush to work, and forgot the note on the bedside table. I’m really sorry.”

Jason let out a sigh of relief. “Good,” he said. “I mean, I was afraid you were ignoring me.”

“I wouldn’t do that,” Nico said, looking down at the counter again, face red. He was really cute, and Jason reached out over the counter to give him a quick kiss on the cheek.

“So can I have your number, then?” he asked, and Nico grinned.

Jason hung around until the shop closed, talking about nothing special. He was a bit concerned that Nico might be bothered by his presence, but the boy didn’t seem to mind. The store was pretty quiet anyway, except for a few old ladies and a couple of well dressed guys coming in asking for red roses.

After Nico closed the shop, they drove to Jason’s place, stopping briefly for drive through at the nearest McDonald’s. Jason was a bit nervous as he unlocked the door to his apartment. He wasn’t really sure what to expect, to be honest. They had already gone all the way yesterday, but that didn’t necessarily mean Nico wanted to repeat it today, even though just looking at him made Jason itch to touch him.

“Nice place,” Nico commented as he walked in, looking around. He stopped briefly to inspect the house plants, probably a habit after working in a flower shop, but thankfully he didn’t comment. Not that there was much Jason could have screwed up in such a short time, anyway. Then he bent down to look at the movie-collection on the bookshelf, and Jason blushed, trying not to stare. But then again, maybe he was allowed to. One way to find out.

Nico straightened up as Jason walked over to him, but he didn’t protest when Jason pulled him close to kiss him. On the contrary, he kissed back. However, he pulled away before long, though he didn’t go far.

“I, um, about yesterday,” Nico murmured, looking away. “I don’t usually do stuff like that. Not on the first date, I mean.”

“Me neither,” Jason said. “A lot of things have happened backwards for us, I think.”

“Well, it works,” Nico said, smiling slightly. “I just wanted you to know so you don’t get the wrong impression. I don’t do it unless I think it’ll last, so, um, I hope you’re okay with that.”

Jason smiled so wide his cheeks hurt. “That’s probably the best thing you could have said,” Jason said, leaning down to kiss him again.

***

Afterwards, they ended up on the couch, tangled together while watching the extended version of _Fellowship of the Ring_. Nico was feeling more content than he had been since forever, with Jason’s arms around him and his back against Jason’s chest. Jason seemed to have developed an obsession with running his hands through Nico’s hair, and it felt really nice.

“So, can I refer to you as my boyfriend now?” Jason asked next to his ear. Nico’s cheeks turned hot at that.

“Sure. I mean, if you want to,” he mumbled. He still had a hard time believing this was actually real, that this gorgeous guy wanted _him_ of all people. Good things like this just didn’t happen to him.

“Good,” Jason said, sounding slightly sleepy. “Are you staying the night?”

“If you don’t mind,” Nico said uncertainly, feeling Jason pull him a bit tighter.

“I want you to stay,” he said. “I promise I’ll wake you up this time.”

“I wouldn’t recommend it,” Nico snorted. “I’m really not a morning person. You might regret this whole thing if you try to get me up too early.”

Jason laughed. "I doubt it."

***

“So I take it things went well yesterday?” Percy asked, grinning when Jason came to work the following day. Jason nodded, fully aware he was smiling like an idiot, but he was too happy to care. He had woken up with Nico in his arms that morning, and had survived waking him up as well. More than survived, really. He could still faintly taste Nico’s lips on his own.

“So who is this guy, anyway?” Percy asked. “You have a picture?”

“Yeah,” Jason said uncertainly. “I took one when he was asleep, but I don’t think he’d appreciate me showing you that.”

“Oh come on, man,” Percy said. “I think I deserve to know after tolerating your worrying yesterday.” 

“Fine,” Jason muttered, looking up the picture on his phone. Nico had looked so ridiculously cute that morning, and Jason hadn’t been able to resist taking a picture before waking him up. He handed the phone to Percy, who looked at it with a frown.

“This...really?” he said, sounding baffled.

“What?” Jason asked dangerously, daring him to say anything against Nico, but Percy started grinning.

“This isn’t Nico di Angelo, is it?” he asked, laughing when Jason confirmed it. “Oh man, I can’t believe it!”

“You know him?” Jason asked.

Percy nodded, still laughing. “We grew up together, though I haven’t seen him in years. I didn’t even know he was gay,” he said. “It’s a small world.”

Percy insisted on coming with Jason to the flower shop after work. Jason didn’t think too much of it, but judging by the way Nico paled the moment Percy appeared he shouldn’t have let him. Percy didn’t seem to notice.

“Hey, man. Long time no see,” Percy smiled as they walked up to the counter, where Nico had been in the middle of arranging bouquets. 

“Yeah,” Nico said, his voice sounding a little strained. “I didn’t realize you two knew each other.”

“Neither did I,” Jason said uncertainly, eyes passing between Nico’s forced smile and Percy’s carefree one. “Percy is my partner.”

“Oh,” Nico said. “Small world.”

“That’s what I said,” Percy laughed. “Anyway, I just came to say hi, but now that I’m here… Do you have red roses somewhere?”

Nico gave Jason an amused look. “Right over here,” he said, walking over to the chiller cabinet. “Are you and Annabeth still together?”

“Yeah, we’re engaged,” Percy said. “You should come visit sometime.”

“Maybe,” Nico said. “How many roses do you want?”

Percy bought ten red roses, then left them alone with a wink. Nico seemed relieved to see him go.

Jason frowned. “What was that all about?” he asked. “He said you were friends, but you didn’t really act like it.”

Nico sighed deeply, turning back to arranging flowers. “You noticed, huh?” he said, sounding resigned. “If I tell you, do you swear you won’t tell him?”

“I promise,” Jason said uncertainly. “Do you have feelings for him?”

Nico smiled bitterly. “I used to. It’s a long story,” he said. “But basically he was my sexuality crisis when I was young.”

“And you never told him?”

“There was no point. He was with Annabeth even then,” Nico said. “Besides, it took me years to even accept I could feel that way for him.”

“Do you still?”

Nico laughed hollowly. “He was my first crush. I think I’ll always have feelings for him, to some extent. It’s a bit hard to be around him,” he said, looking down at the flowers in his hands. “But it’s in the past. I’ve moved on.”

Jason tried to accept that, but there was an ugly jealousy in his chest that he couldn’t seem to shake, making him want to claim Nico as his own somehow. He was aware it was irrational, but it still made him push Nico up the wall and kiss him desperately the moment they walked through the door to Nico’s apartment. Nico made a surprised sound into his mouth, but didn’t seem opposed to it.

“Hey,” Nico breathed between kisses. “What’s gotten into you?”

“Nothing,” Jason said, moving down to suck on his neck while his hands moved up Nico’s shirt. “I want you.”

“You’re not usually this aggressive,” Nico said, moaning a bit before placing his hands on Jason’s chest, slowly pushing him away. “This isn’t about Percy, is it? Don’t tell me you’re jealous.”

Jason groaned, taking a step back. “Of course I’m jealous,” he muttered. “I mean, we’ve only been together for a couple of days and then I find out you have feelings for my partner, who’ve known you since childhood.”

“Jason, what part of ‘I’ve moved on’ was hard for you to understand?” Nico said, clearly getting angry. “I wouldn’t be here if I wanted someone else.”

“Sorry,” Jason said, feeling like a jerk. “I didn’t mean it like that. I just...I don’t really know you yet, and I’d really like to.”

“You know me better than he does,” Nico said, smiling slightly as he put his hands on Jason’s hips and pulled him closer again. “But I’m not opposed to getting to know each other better.”

Jason grinned. “Well, I’ve learned you’re not fond of aggressive fondling.”

“I actually don’t mind it so much,” Nico murmured as Jason gently kissed his neck. “As long as it’s not out of jealousy.”

“Sorry,” Jason said again, pulling him a bit closer. “Tell me how you like it.”

“You’ve been doing okay so far,” Nico said, hands sliding over Jason’s ass. “Just keep doing what you’ve been doing, and we’re good.”

***

“Oh, you shouldn’t have done that,” Nico laughed as he placed the card down. “Hades has 5000 attack points when you engage first, you know. Bye-bye Bellona. Also your lares are now mine.”

“Damn,” Jason swore, looking down at the cards between them on the bed. “I was sure I had you with that. You really weren’t kidding about being good at this.”

“Told you,” Nico said smugly. “I used to do this a lot when I was little.”

Jason laughed. “What? Playing Mythomagic naked in bed after having sex?”

Nico blushed. “The ‘naked’ and ‘sex’-parts are new,” he murmured. “But I think I could get used to it.”

“You’ll have to. I want a rematch,” Jason said, making a face at him. “That was my last card. You won, you bastard.”

Nico smirked. “When you say ‘rematch’...”

Jason grinned. “Come here.”

As Nico moved over to kiss him, Jason thought about the two of them, how different they were but how well they fit together. It was all still pretty new, but Jason had a feeling it would last.

Smiling, he kissed back.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!


End file.
